04:05
ISSUE 3
“Labour has proposed the creation of a single status of ‘worker’ for all but the genuinely self-employed. This would extend many workplace rights to a far larger pool of people.”
Family-friendly rights: Labour has proposed a raft of family- friendly reforms, including under the Employment Rights Bill to make it unlawful to dismiss a woman for six months after her return from maternity leave (except in specific circumstances to be defined). Further, it has promised a review of parental leave with a view to making it a day-one right, a review of the new carer’s leave rights with a view to ensuring leave (currently one week) is paid, and ensuring bereavement leave is available for all workers. Reforms propose that the flexible working legislation is further updated to ensure “ flexibility is a genuine default ”. As they stand, these proposals represent the most employee- favourable changes to the law for decades. The Labour Party indicated its intention to start the legislative process to implement the reforms within 100 days of entering government. However, due to the need for full consultation and parliamentary processes, as well as the sheer volume of proposals, it is likely to be a while before we see such reforms implemented, whilst others may be significantly amended or not go ahead at all.
The Employment Rights Bill will propose a clamp down on the practice of fire and rehire, which is often used to implement contractual changes which employees have rejected in the consultation process (if there was a consultation process). The proposal is to limit the use of this process as part of a restructuring for a business to remain ‘viable to preserve its workforce’ if no alternative. The new statutory code on ‘fire and rehire’ published on 18 July 2024 is deemed inadequate by the new government, which has committed to strengthen it. The purpose of the Code is to “ ensure employers take all reasonable steps to explore alternatives to dismissal and re-engagement and engage in meaningful consultation with a view to reaching an agreed outcome in good faith and with an open mind ”. It aims to stop the practice of threatening dismissal as a negotiating tactic unless this is genuinely the employer’s intention; it should be a last resort. The government also considers the collective consultation requirements should be triggered if redundancies reach the relevant threshold across the business as a whole rather than by site (or establishment).
Made with FlippingBook - Share PDF online